The present invention relates to a firing angle control system for a converting device for an AC electric motor vehicle, such as train, having a motor operating as a separately excited motor both during power running and regeneration.
FIG. 1 shows conventional main circuitry including a power converting device for an AC electric motor vehicle. Pantographs 1 and wheels 2 of the vehicle are used to transmit the voltage across an overhead wire 3 and rails 4 to a primary winding 6 of a transformer 5. Connected to secondary windings 7-9 of the transformer 5 are an armature 11 and a field winding 12 of a main motor 10, a smoothing reactor 13, a main rectifier 14 and a field rectifier 15. During power running, switches 16-19 are turned to the side "P" i.e., in the states as illustrated, so that the field winding 12 is in series with the armature, and the main motor 10 operates as a series motor. During regeneration, the switches 16-19 are on the side "B", so that the field winding 12 is separated and the motor operates as a separately excited motor. This arrangement is disadvantageous in that switches 16-19, and related components are required, and hence the entire arrangement is bulky and heavy.
To simplify the circuitry and to reduce the weight of the components, an arrangement was conceived wherein, as shown in FIG. 2, a motor 10 is connected to operate as a separately excited motor both during power running and during regeneration. But with this arrangement, a flashover (short-circuiting between commutator brushes) often occurs in the motor 10 upon abrupt rise of the feed voltage (primary voltage). This arrangement therefore has not been actually used despite the advantages of simpler circuitry and reduced weight.